Starring Tom Hardy, with voice work by Ruth Wilson, Olivia Coleman, Andrew Scott and more

Grade: Four stars

“Locke” is a gorgeous, heartbreaking little gem of a movie, the kind of film that restores your faith in the power of both acting and storytelling. The drama unfolds mostly in dialogue along the length of a single car ride, but it paints the picture of a man desperately trying to hold his dissolving life together as beautifully and powerfully as any multi-set epic. I was clutching the arms of my seat for most of the movie, hopeful and sad and more than a little afraid for the man in front of me.

Hardy is a revelation, his face capturing every shade of feeling his character is wrenched through over the course of the movie. The rest of the cast is nearly as fantastic, their voices creating rich emotional pictures of characters we never see in person. Thanks to them and Wright’s beautiful, image-rich dialogue, that simple car unfolded in my mind’s eye until I could see the entire world.